Sunday, January 29, 2012

We The People Press Release On FOI Request

Following below is a Press release issued by We The People Of Connecticut Inc.

1
PRESS
RELEASE
–
1/27/12

Hartford, CT— On January 26, 2011, We the People of Connecticut, Inc., utilizing a team of representatives in a coordinated effort, simultaneously filed six formal Freedom of Information requests with six state agencies, including Governor Dannel Malloy’s office, seeking to obtain all documents relevant to the issuance of Governor Malloy’s Executive Orders Nine and Ten.

After waiting approximately four hours at Governor Malloy’s Office, Governor Malloy’s General Counsel, Andrew McDonald provided We the People of Connecticut with a single compact disk containing 44 documents. The documents provided, however, were primarily copies of agendas, minutes, and related materials created by, or presented to, the working group at its open meetings. We, the People of Connecticut, Inc. requested the following:

“We request the inspection and copies of any and all communications in the possession, or under the control or direction of, you and/or your office, wherever and in whatever form they exist – on paper, digital, electronic, or in any other form – to and/or from any public and/or private person and/or entity regarding all matters included in, and/or relating to:

(1) Governor Malloy’s Executive Orders 9 and 10;

(2) Any and all policies, procedures and processes regarding the establishment and implementation of any system of collective bargaining relating to child care workers and/or personal care attendants;

(3) Any and all policies, procedures and processes regarding the establishment and implementation of any election procedures for representatives of child care workers and/or personal care attendants;

(5) Any and all policies, procedures, processes, minutes, notes and all other documents regarding and/or resulting from any and all “meet and confer” sessions or proceedings relating to child care workers and/or personal care attendants;

(7) Conversations, meetings, notes, and any other communication with, any and all SEIU members or representatives, and/or any other union, representative entity, and/or third party, relating to child care workers and/or personal care attendants;

(8) The amount of money spent to date by any and all state agencies or individuals in discussing, planning, relating to and/or implementing Governor Malloy’s Executive Orders 9 and 10; and We the People of Connecticut, Inc.

(9) Communications, in any form, of any kind, to and/or from, any and all state agency or agencies, employee or employees of any and all state agencies, and individual child care workers and/or personal care attendants.

We are also hereby requesting that you immediately provide us with the following information:

(1) the names of all state employees who have worked on issues relating to Executive Orders 9 and 10:

(2) the state agency or agencies for whom they work or worked, the dates they began working on those issues, the dates they stopped working on those issues, whether they are continuing to work on those issues, how many hours per day they worked or are working on those issues, how many total hours they have worked on those issues from the time they began working on them until the date of this letter, and the subject matter of the work they performed or are performing on those issues;

(3) how much money from every state agency has been spent working on issues directly related to Executive Orders 9 and 10 from the first day those agencies began working on those issues until the date of this letter.”

The state’s Freedom of Information Act allows individuals to “inspect” documents of government agencies, with certain limited exceptions, at any time during the regular business hours.

None of the six teams of We the People of Connecticut, Inc. were allowed to inspect any documents requested, despite remaining in the offices of the six agencies for anywhere from four to six hours.

The CD of documents provided by McDonald contained only the following:

1.10 FCC Agenda.pdf

1.10 PCA Agenda.pdf

12.9.2011 FCC Working Group Minutes.doc

12.9.2011 PCA Working Group Minutes.doc

12.21 FCC Minutes.pdf

12.21 PCA Minutes.pdf

12.21 PCA Working Group Minutes.doc

12.21.2011 FCC Working Group Minutes.doc

CGA 19a-77 - Child Day Care Services Defined.doc

Executive Order No. 9.pdf

Executive Order No. 10.pdf

FCC - Maryann Parker testimony 1-10-12 FINAL.pdf

FCC - Maryland 2011 Report to MGA.doc

FCC - Maryland ChildCareProviders - Executive Order.pdf

FCC - Maryland Final SEIU Agreement62911css.pdf

FCC - Maryland HB 465_2010 annual report1.doc

FCC - Maryland hb465.pdf

FCC - Maryland SB 0284 - Collective Bargining.pdf

FCC - Maryland SEIU Memorandum of Agreement.pdf

FCC 1.10 Harry Elliot Presentation.pdf

FCC 1.10 Jennifer Harris Letter.pdf

FCC 1.10 meeting minutes draft.doc

FCC 1.10 Working Group Minutes.pdf

FCC 1.25 Meeting Agenda.pdf

FCC Agenda 12.9.doc

FCC Agenda 12.21.doc

FCC Draft Agenda 1.10.doc

FCC Draft Agenda 1.25.doc

FCC Providers Care4Kids.xls

NAFCC Best Practices for FCC Union Organizing.doc

Oregon HB 3618 Home Care Ammendment.pdf

Oregon Home Care Commission Constitutional Article.doc

Oregon Home Care Commission Legislation ORS 410.600-410.625.doc

Oregon PCA Contract.pdf

PCA - 1.10 Harry Elliot Presentation.pdf

PCA - CA SEIU-UHW 2009-11 AGREEMENT 3-09.pdf

PCA - Walter Kamiat Testimony 011012 (2).docx

PCA - Walter Kamiat Testimony 011012 (2).pdf

PCA 1.10 Draft Minutes.doc

PCA 1.10 Working Group Minutes.pdf

PCA Agenda 12.9.doc

PCA Agenda 12.21.doc

PCA Draft Agenda 1.10.doc

Wash. State SEIU Home Care Contract.pdf

McDonald also provided a letter in response to the requests, acknowledging receipt of the Freedom of Information requests and indicating, “We are in the process of reviewing what documentation may be responsive to your request, and whether or not any exemptions to disclosure may be applicable.” The letter also stated, “We have endeavored to comply with that request to the greatest extent possible, given our other responsibilities, workload, staffing levels and access to certain computers where such information resides”, and “When we complete the balance of our document review, we will respond in the appropriate manner.”

We would note that “endeavoring to comply” is not the same as actual compliance, and “responding in the appropriate manner” is not the same as actually providing non-exempt documents. It is obvious that only a limited number of documents concerning the issuance of Executive Orders 9 and 10 were made public after the FOI requests were received by the Governor’s Office and that only the information surrounding the meetings involving the working groups was released.

We the People of Connecticut, Inc. is certain that there were numerous other conversations, emails and meetings at the State Capitol, in the Governor's Office, and among the various state agencies, related to the issuance of Executive Orders 9 and 10 concerning the Governor's push for child care workers and personal care attendants to unionize. The people of Connecticut have a right to see every kind of information under the law concerning the background of the issuance of these orders, and they must be put in full view of our citizens when FOI requests are issued.

We the People of Connecticut, Inc. sincerely hopes that the Governor’s Office and the other state agencies fully comply with the law, allow for inspection during regular business hours of all non-exempt materials whenever a citizen makes such a request.

Although our request for inspection was met with total non-compliance by all six agencies, it is our sincere hope that the Governor’s promised response to our request will be swift, complete, and in full compliance with the law.

We the People of Connecticut will continue to work for the citizens of Connecticut in this matter, and in defense of the Constitution whenever, and however, necessary.
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